Very good mountain paths throughout although care needs to be taken on the ascent of Bell Rib on Yewbarrow and descending Stirrup Crag to Dore Head. Both ascent and descent require careful but not difficult negotiation over loose stone and ideally should be left for a day with dry conditions. The transit over to Steeple from Scoat Fell looks precarious but is less so on the ground.

Superb visibility and warm for the most part. Cool breezes on the summits.

​10hrs

4908ft (1496m)

5

OL4 - The English Lakes (North Western Area)OL6 - The English Lakes (South Western Area)​

Walk Description

As walks go this is a classic - a version of the Mosedale Horseshoe that, when done on a clear day is hard to beat. Today the intention was to climb Yewbarrow, Red Pike, Scoat Fell, Steeple & Pillar and return to Wasdale via Mosedale. The Horseshoe ordinarily includes Kirk Fell and therefore the ideal route would be to add this in also - plus bung in the High Level & Shamrock Traverses on Pillar and you have a superb day out. Today however, I was leading a walk with Lakeland Meet Ups therefore kept it manageable with the intention of enjoying a great day out with good company.

The walk today started from the Car Park at Overbeck Bridge - starting here means a long walk along the road to/from Wasdale depending on which way round you go. Leaving the Car Park a path heads uphill alongside a fence to eventually pass through a gate onto the open fell side. The ascent now becomes extremely steep as the route heads directly uphill towards Bell Rib on Yewbarrow. Reaching a large stile we crossed the fence & wall to begin a gradual climb to a junction giving access to a zig zag path that heads directly up between Dropping Crag & Bell Rib. This is a delightful scramble and gives the walker the opportunity to get 'hands on rock' as the steep ascent is negotiated. Eventually the rock gives way to grass and all of a sudden the magnificent view through Great Door appears.

​From Great Door it is a short climb up on to Yewbarrow's South Ridge from where a gradual rise leads to the summit cairn. A level transit then begins over to Yewbarrow's North Top with the views from both summits being quite exceptional. From the North Top's cairn a path leads to the steep drop down Stirrup Crag to Dore Head - for some reason this descent scares the life out of people but providing the conditions are dry and you take your time then there is nothing to be afraid of. From Dore Head the path up to Red Pike can be seen snaking its way up the fell side and it is a long trudge to reach the 801m cairn. Here there is an option to simply carry along the escarpment to reach the summit or detour off to the left for 120 yards or so to visit the Chair Cairn - it is worth the diversion as the views from the cairn are superb and it is a great lunch stop too.

Once back on the main path it is a delightful walk along the escarpment to reach Red Pike's summit, the cairn of which stands on a precipice and as Wainwright stated "cannot be walked round" (Red Pike 7) - the views from here to Pillar are simply outstanding. Next stop was Scoat Fell and it is an easy amble to reach the summit, the cairn of which sits atop the Ennerdale Fence wall. Peeping over the wall our next goal of Steeple could be seen across Mirk Cove - this is a fantastic view and draws you over to climb this delightful fell. We therefore crossed the wall and made our way over to the top of the arête and whilst the way ahead looks a bit precarious, the transit is on a good path and not at all difficult.

Retracing our steps back across the arête and back over to Scoat Fell, it was time to make the long trip to Pillar. The route is another delightful walk in itself, firstly over bouldery ground to Black Crag then a steep drop down to the col of Wind Gap. From the col it is a steep pull over rocky ground to reach the flat plateau of Pillar's summit - there are shelters and a Trig Point adorning the smooth top. We had the summit to ourselves and I took the group over to the northern edge of the mountain to have a look at Pillar Rock - I must admit to toying with the idea of heading down via the Shamrock Traverse and returning to the original route via the High Level Traverse but this had been a long day already therefore I stuck to the original plan.

The climbing was now over for the day and we headed back to Wasdale via the Black Sail Pass, resisting the urge to make the short detour to Looking Stead, preferring to head straight down to the large cairn at the top of the pass. It is still a fair old schlep back to Overbeck Bridge but in the evening sun it was a delightful walk down through Mosedale and we were soon back at Wasdale Head where the Inn was busy with people enjoying the early evening sun. All that remained was to dodge the traffic in and around the green and head back to the start via the road.

This was a fantastic walk and one I never tire of having done it several times now. It was great to lead a lovely bunch of people on one of Lakeland's classic routes.​

The Car Park at Overbeck Bridge - there was work going on here hence the restricted space. This should be complete by December 2018

Bell Rib on Yewbarrow's south ridge - the normal route of ascent is around to the left between Bell Rib & Dropping Crag

Looking across Wastwater to Illgill Head & Whin Rigg

Heading up Yewbarrow - all smiles now but would be smiling in 12 miles time? Of course we will.

After the steep pull up to the base of Yewbarrow this large stile is crossed to gain a path sloping across the south western flank.Fudge has his 'not another stile photo' gob on him

Pausing for breath just before the scrambling started - and what a view